Local Builders To Benefit As Paris Will Invest €3.2B In New Sites For 2024 Games

September 13, 2017

The IOC is expected to award the 2024 Olympics to Paris on Wednesday with a vote in Lima, Peru, according to Ania Nussbaum of BLOOMBERG. Lone rival L.A. will reportedly get the 2028 Games. To celebrate the official selection as host, Paris is "planning an open-air concert and live event near the Eiffel Tower." French companies are also "feeling festive," eyeing the estimated €6.6B ($7.9B) the city expects will be spent to prepare the world's biggest sporting event. French Industrial group Bouygues CEO Martin Bouygues said, "It's extremely positive. The Games are an opportunity to upgrade existing infrastructure and develop new ones." A total of $3.2B will be invested in new sites, "with most of the money coming from private sponsors, the IOC and tickets sales." Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo said, "The Olympic Games is a project for all of society that pulls in all sectors." Hidalgo "brushed aside the specter of decaying stadiums and abandoned installations in former host cities." She insisted France will create "lasting benefits" and will work with companies to ensure the Games stay within the budget, which stands at "less than half the cost of Rio" and includes a €1.5B ($1.79B) contribution from the French state. She added that most of the sports and housing installations already exist. Anything else "could boost activity for local builders," including Bouygues, Vinci, Eiffage and Saint-Gobain, a supplier of materials like glass and drywall (BLOOMBERG, 9/12).